


Take a sad song and make it better

by CelesteFitzgerald



Category: The Beatles (Band)
Genre: Christmas, Established Relationship, Fluff and Angst, M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-01-07
Updated: 2021-01-07
Packaged: 2021-03-17 21:27:09
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 928
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28606692
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/CelesteFitzgerald/pseuds/CelesteFitzgerald
Summary: While decorating their Christmas tree, John accidentally breaks one of Paul's baubles. He tries to make it up to him.
Relationships: John Lennon/Paul McCartney
Comments: 16
Kudos: 61





	Take a sad song and make it better

**Author's Note:**

  * For [IDONTGETNOSLEEPCAUSEOFYALL](https://archiveofourown.org/users/IDONTGETNOSLEEPCAUSEOFYALL/gifts).



> A belated Christmas gift for the lovely Stormy!! Love youuuuu <3 <3

“Paul. Paul, look at me.”

It took several seconds for Paul to sigh, turn away from the Christmas tree, and finally look at John. He was met with the sight of half a dozen baubles hooked into John’s shirt. “See?” John said, holding his arms out and twirling. “Aren’t I beautiful? Tell me I’m beautiful.”

“If you keep spinning like that, you’re gonna smash them to bits.” Paul plucked one of the dangerously swaying balls from John’s shirt and stuck it back on the tree. When John pouted in silence, he added, “Yes, you’re beautiful. Now, help me hang these up.”

John grumbled, but he still put the baubles back on the tree. He grumbled less when Paul rewarded him with a kiss. After a bit more humming of Christmas tunes, standing on tiptoes to reach the high branches, and using a red bauble to pretend to be Rudolph, the tree was finally decorated.

“This looks beautiful, too,” John said, his arm wrapped around Paul’s waist and Paul’s head on his shoulder as they looked at their masterpiece.

“It really does,” Paul said. “What d’you say I warm up some hot cocoa so we can relax for a bit?”

John smiled warmly. “Yes, please.”

While Paul headed to the kitchen, John closed the empty decoration boxes. He stacked them into a tower, picked them up, and blindly made his way toward the storage closet—but he froze as something shattered to the ground.

“Fuck.”

Dropping the boxes, John knelt in front of the bauble he had knocked into. It was a gorgeous star made of purple- and blue-tinted glass. Or, at least, it _was_. Now, it lay on the floor broken into unsightly chunks.

John nervously looked toward the kitchen. Paul hadn’t heard a thing. Maybe he could just throw it out and Paul would never have to know. Then John wouldn’t have to listen to Paul berate him for being careless—again. His mind made up, John carried the shards of glass to the bin in the bathroom and shoved them all the way to the bottom.

Their hot cocoa cuddles weren’t quite as cozy with the image of his mistake burned in the back of his mind.

* * *

John had almost forgotten until he caught Paul circling the tree and frowning three days later. “Everything alright, love?” John said, wrapping his arms around Paul and kissing the side of his neck.

“I could have sworn I hung it up,” Paul muttered.

“Hung what up?”

“The bauble from my mum. I can’t find it anywhere.”

John tensed. “What does it look like?”

“You know which one it is,” Paul snapped. Then he took a deep breath. “Sorry. I mean, the star one. I just…I can’t lose this one.”

John’s palms started to sweat as Paul bit at his lip. “Maybe it’s still in one of the boxes?” John offered helplessly.

“Yeah…yeah, it has to be,” Paul said softly, his voice coming out higher than normal. He rushed off to the closet and tore through the loose sheets of paper and bubble wrap in the boxes.

After checking that Paul wasn’t looking, John crept to the bathroom and emptied the bin onto the floor, not caring about the mess. Maybe he could glue it back together. But the bauble had been crushed even more under the other rubbish. It was beyond repair.

John rubbed his hand over his mouth. This would kill Paul. And it was all his fault.

He had to fix this. He _would_ fix this. He just needed to figure out how.

* * *

As soon as Paul stepped out of the flat the next day, John put his plan into action. He accidentally cut open his fingers on the glass a few times, but it was worth it to make this up to Paul. When he finished, it didn’t look half bad. Hopefully Paul would agree.

John was pacing the living room when Paul returned. “Getting in your exercise for the day?” Paul said with a grin. His smile fell when John didn’t return it. “What’s the matter?”

“Please don’t hate me,” John said, carefully clutching his project behind his back. “I broke it.”

Paul cocked his head. “Broke what?”

“The bauble. From your mum.” At Paul’s silence, he said, “B-but it was an accident. I knocked into the tree and it fell and…I’m sorry.”

Paul stared at him. He opened and closed his hands into loose fists. “…That’s alright,” he said tersely.

“It’s not, though. I know how much it meant to you. I wasn’t able to put it back together, but,” John held out his peace offering, “I did the best I could.”

In his hand, the new bauble spun on its string. The outside was a clear, round bauble John had taken from the tree. Inside were the small pieces of the broken one. Up close, the damage was evident, but from a few meters away, the tiny splinters of blue and purple blended together into one shimmering, sunlight-capturing orb. “I know it’s not the same, but—”

“It’s perfect.”

John looked up at Paul in shock. “It is?”

Paul’s eyes glistened as he gently took it from John’s hand. “It’s…thank you. Thank you so much.”

“You’re not mad?”

Paul smiled and shook his head. “It was only an accident. And this is the sweetest, loveliest way to preserve it.” He stepped forward and kissed John softly. “I love it.” He hung it on the tree front and center. Sure, it wasn’t quite the same, but it still made Paul smile.


End file.
